'Festivus' pole goes up next to Nativity in Deerfield

DEERFIELD BEACH Mary, Joseph and Baby Jesus have graced the corner of Hillsboro Boulevard and Federal Highway every December for more than 20 years.

This year, they're joined by an 8-foot-tall aluminum Festivus Pole, symbol of a Dec. 23 atheist "holiday" that became a pop culture hit after being featured in a "Seinfeld" episode.

"It's just 23 beer cans stacked 8 feet high and conveniently located 6 feet from Baby Jesus," said activist blogger Chaz Stevens, who installed it Thursday with the city's permission.

Stevens said he has been trying unsuccessfully for five years to get the city to take down the Nativity scene. So this year he asked for space to express his own unreligious beliefs.

"Think of how many people have died over the years to give us our freedoms," Stevens said. "So I've got to push back a little."

City Attorney Andrew Maroudis declined to comment.

But Marc Rohr, a law professor at Nova Southeastern University called the display an unusual move. "I think the atheists of the world are more interested in preventing religious displays than in joining them.''